The NBA is reportedly seeking ~$8bn per year in their next broadcast deal, a figure so high that some have speculated it could include buying out all regional TV deals. Given that, would it make sense for Netflix or Hulu to bid for exclusive rights to all NBA games and reshape the market?

CNBC report that the NBA is seeking $8bn per year in their next rights deal, up from the current figure of $2.5bn.

On the latest episode of Dunc'd On, Nate Duncan and Danny Leroux, both well-versed in the financial aspects of sports business (Nate has been a lecturer at Sports Business Classroom in Vegas for a few years now) speculate that this new figure is so high because it includes major networks buying out local TV deals and consolidating NBA content.

Given that, this would seem to me like the perfect opportunity for one of the big streaming platforms to reshape the sports landscape and bid for exclusive rights to all NBA content.

$8bn per year is probably wishful thinking on the NBA's part. The NFL's new deal doubles their previous annual take of $5bn to $10bn, so if the real figure is more in line with doubling rather than tripling, the price for the NBA could be in the $5-6bn range. Netflix currently spends ~$20bn annually on content, so while this would be a huge outlay for them it looks to me like it is conceivable they could raise the money.

Netflix has the deep market penetration and the streaming technology to replace League Pass/local tv/national tv broadcasts all by themselves imo, and speaking as a fan I would love to have every game live and on demand in one place. I'd definitely pay a Netflix premium for that. It would be like League Pass International, but on an app that actually works.